Quantum State Tomography via Variational Quantum Algorithms
Jincheng Zhang
Abstract
Quantum state tomography (QST) is a fundamental technique in quantum information science, aiming to reconstruct the density matrix of an unknown quantum state from experimental measurements. However, traditional QST methods often suffer from significant computational demands and are highly susceptible to measurement noise, hindering their practical application, particularly with near-term quantum computers. This work proposes a novel approach to QST utilizing variational quantum algorithms (VQAs). VQAs iteratively optimize a parameterized quantum circuit to minimize a cost function related to the fidelity between the desired state and the state predicted by the circuit. This approach dramatically reduces the number of required measurements and offers the potential for achieving high-fidelity state reconstruction with lower quantum resource requirements. We detail the theoretical framework, outlining the core algorithms and mathematical formulations. The key advantage lies in the ability to learn the state directly, mitigating the limitations of traditional methods. We explore the optimization landscape and discuss strategies for improving convergence and robustness. The results demonstrate a promising path toward scalable and robust QST on quantum devices.